LUCKNOW: Madhya Pradesh Governor Lalji Tandon died at a hospital here early Tuesday morning. He was 85.

Tandon was in hospital for the past few weeks. According to his son Ashutosh Tandon, he died at 5.35 am.

His last rites will be performed later in the day.

Tandon was admitted at the Medanta hospital on June 11 with breathing problems, fever and difficulty in urination. He, thereafter, developed complications in liver and kidney and even underwent a surgical procedure.

He was put on ventilator later. Born on April 12, 1935, Tandon is survived by his wife Krishna Tandon and three sons.

The veteran leader has served as member of the Uttar Pradesh Vidhan Parishad for two terms and also remained the Leader of House of the Council. He was elected to the Vidhan Sabha for three terms and was minister in BJP and BSP -BJP governments.

In May 2009, he was elected to the 15th Lok Sabha from Lucknow by a margin over 40,000 votes. In 2018, he was appointed Governor of Bihar and shifted to Madhya Pradesh in the same capacity in 2019.

His body will be kept at his official residence in Hazratganj and later at his Sindhi Tola residence in Chowk to enable people to pay their last respects.

The last journey will start at 4 in the evening for the Gulala Ghat where his last rites will be performed later in the day, Ashutosh Tandon said in a statement.

Condoling the demise of the governor, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he will be remembered for his untiring efforts to serve society.

In a series of tweets, Modi recalled that Lalji Tandon played a key role in strengthening the BJP in Uttar Pradesh.

UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and BSP President Mayawati also expressed grief over Tandon's death.

The UP government has announced three days mourning as a mark of respect to Lalji Tandon, a former cabinet minister, a government spokesman said.

Belonging to the Atal Bihari Vajpayee and L K Advani era of BJP leaders, Lalji Tandon proved himself as an able administrator during his decades-long political career in Uttar Pradesh.
A former Lok Sabha MP, he was later given gubernatorial responsibility.

He took oath as Madhya Pradesh governor on July 29, 2019, when the Congress was in power in the state, after serving in the same post in Bihar for nearly 11 months.